A Very Naruto Christmas
by Allos
Summary: A bit late, I know, but it's still worth the read if you like cute stories.


"Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way! Oh what fuuuun, it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh!" Naruto sang loudly and out of key as he walked down the street with Shikamaru and Chouji. Naruto had tied a bunch of bells to his belt, and was jumping roughly in time with the music. It had taken a lot of convincing before Shikamaru managed to talk Naruto out of wearing antlers, too. Chouji didn't seem to mind, which irked Shikamaru even more.

"Could you stop that? It's embarrassing to be seen with you." Shikamaru muttered. The three of them were going to Sakura's for the Christmas party she'd been planning with Ino and Tenten for the past two weeks. He looked over and saw Chouji was eating the cookies Ino had ordered them to bring with them. "Chouji, don't eat those! They're for the party. Ino will kill me if they're all gone by the time we get there."

"Don't worry, Shikamaru! Ino won't mind, besides, Hinata is bringing some too!" Chouji said as he popped a few more into his mouth.

"Oh what fuuuun, it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh! Yeah!"

"I thought Hinata was bringing some pie. And you say not to worry, but it's not you Ino's going to get mad at. Stop eating them already!"

"Hmph. And you say your father is whipped." Nevertheless, Chouji stopped eating the cookies.

"Why is Hinata bringing cookies _and_ pie? I don't remember her saying that." Naruto asked, now that he was done his song.

"She didn't say it. It's supposed to be a secret." Chouji said.

"Wait… then why did you just tell us?" Naruto asked.

"And how do you know in the first place?" Shikamaru added.

Chouji laughed. "When it comes to food, no information is safe from me!"

"That's… that's the worst answer ever." Naruto replied.

"Hey, guys! How's it going! On your way to the Christmas party?" They turned to see Sakura and Ino come out of a side street.

"Yeah… but shouldn't you two be at Sakura's house?" Chouji asked.

"Greeting guests and what-not?" Shikamaru added, looking bored. Ino scowled at him.

"Actually, we came looking for you, Shikamaru-san. We need your help." Sakura said quickly before Ino got out of control.

"Oh man, I'm not going to like this, I can tell." Shikamaru groaned.

"Yeah, probably not, but it's something that needs to be done. We need you to take Sasuke-kun to the party." Sakura said.

Shikamaru looked from Sakura to Ino. "Look, I know that Sasuke is good-looking, but I just don't swing that way." Ino smacked him with her fist, and Shikamaru cried out in pain. While he was rubbing his head, Naruto was pondering.

"Yeah, but Sakura-chan is right. Sasuke is obviously gay, so we, as his friends, should try to find him a good boyfriend." Sakura punched him so hard he flew into a wall.

"IDIOT! Sasuke-kun is not gay! What I mean is that he refuses to come to the party, so we need Shikamaru to use his shadow imitation to force him to come!" As soon as Sakura was finished, Naruto was up and making a fist.

"Don't worry about that! I'll just beat him up and make him come with us!" Sakura punched him again.

"Idiot! Like you could ever beat Sasuke-kun. Plus, if you lay a finger on him, I'll beat you to a pulp!"

"Okay, Sakura-chan." Naruto said meekly.

"Shikamaru, please do this for me? Pleeeease?" Ino cooed.

"Will you leave me alone for a while?"

Ino scowled again, but refrained from hitting him. "Yes."

"Alright, alright, I'll come. Someone has to go with Naruto and Chouji to make sure they don't eat all the cookies though."

"You'd better do that, Sakura." Ino said. "I can't make Chouji do a thing."

"You just want to be the one to be with Sasuke when he comes to the party!"

"Well duh, forehead girl!"

"Don't start with me, Ino-pig."

"Ino, Shikamaru's already left." Chouji said, pointing in the direction the two girls had came from. They all turned to see Shikamaru already way ahead of them. "If you don't hurry, he really will be the one to take Sasuke to the party." At that, both Ino and Sakura tore down the street, catching up with Shikamaru in seconds and quickly passing him.

"Heh heh, now I can eat these cookies!" Chouji said, smiling.

"Hey, Chouji! What are you doing?" Naruto asked him.

"Eating cookies, of course."

"Well, let me have some!"

It didn't take long for them to finish of the first box of cookies and start on the second. They were munching down merrily, singing jingle bells again, because it was the only song too which they both knew the words. They were almost at Sakura's house when they ran into Hinata and Neji.

"Oi! Hinata! Neji! Are you on your way to the party too?" Naruto yelled at them.

"Y-yes we are, N-Naruto-kun." Hinata said shyly. Neji nodded in confirmation.

Naruto ran up and grabbed Hinata by the shoulders. "Hinata! You'll sing Christmas carols with me and Chouji, right? Right?" Hinata turned a deep shade of red, and started wobbling.

"Huh? Hinata, do you a have a fever or som-Hinata!" Naruto yelled as she crumpled in place, unconscious.

"It must be the fever. We'd better get her to Sakura's house quick." Neji said. "Chouji's already carrying something, so I'll just take Hinata-sama's stuff and you carry her, Naruto." Neji said.

Naruto put his hand to his forehead in a salute. "Right, Neji! You can count on me!" He grabbed Hinata and threw her onto his back. Then he ran off to Sakura's house.

"Wait, you're carrying stuff too, and so is Naruto. Why did you make him carry Hinata?" Chouji asked, innocently.

Neji looked at Chouji incredulously, and Chouji returned his gaze with a blank stare. "You really…? Never mind. Just, never mind." Chouji shrugged and went back to eating his cookies.

"Neji-kun! I see that you are carrying many items for the party! But I won't let you beat me!" A voice cried out as a dark shape jumped off a nearby roof to the ground.

"This isn't training Lee, I'm just… Did you bring a tree!?" Lee had a large pointy tree-shaped object covered in wrapping paper on his back, along with a smaller present.

"Hah! Everyone knows that you don't tell people what the presents you're giving away are!" Lee shouted.

Chouji nodded. "He's right."

"But, Lee, it's obvious what it is. And will it even fit inside the house? And also, we did the secret Santa thing. You were only supposed to get one present for one person."

"But I only did get one gift! The other is a secret."

"Fine. Do whatever you want Lee. I'm sure that they will like their presents." Neji sighed as he gave up. Only Gai could talk Lee out of something once he had made up his mind. And there were definitely _not_ going to be any teachers at this party. Tenten said that Sakura had forbidden it. As they reached Sakura's house, Neji asked himself again why he was here, wasting time instead of training. It was probably because both his teammates demanded it of him. He remembered Tenten saying, 'There's no way I'm going to let you miss a party I'm helping to organize. Besides, don't you know that if you don't take a brake once in a while, you burn out your body? Anyways, you'd better come, or else.' Neji hadn't liked the look in her eye when she had said 'or else'. Lee had tried to convince him too. 'Neji, training is important, but if you don't spend time with your friends, what are you training for?' Even Hinata had asked him a few days ago if he intended to go. In the end, he had succumbed to peer pressure. That, and there was the fact that today they had snow removal teams out on the training grounds, so he couldn't even go out there if he wanted to.

Lee knocked and the three of them waited until Tenten opened the door, with a bright smile on her face. "Hey guys! We've been waiting for you. Naruto said that you were right behind him."

Lee let Chouji and Neji go in first before he tried to fit the wrapped up tree through the door. Ignoring him, Neji turned to Tenten. "Did Hinata wake up yet?"

Tenten smiled wickedly. "No, but she probably will soon. How did she end up on Naruto's back?"

"Why, she fainted from fever, of course. It's not uncommon in this weather." Neji said, with only the slightest hint of a smile on his lips.

"Oh, of course. Set your present under the tree. When Lee gets it into the house." Tenten said, turning away.

"Hey, wait, you mean Lee was _supposed_ to bring a tree?" Neji asked.

"Well yeah, why did you think he had one?" Tenten stuck out her tongue before she walked over to Chouji to try and rescue the cookies from him. _Was he messing with me? Or did I just misread the situation? _Neji heard a grunt from behind him and turned in time to see the top of the tree coming at his face.

"Hah!" Neji cried as he ducked to the side. He almost unleashed a counter attack until he remembered that it was only a tree. So he yelled at Lee instead.

"Watch where you're throwing that thing, Lee! You nearly took my head off." Lee gave him a 'thumbs up' and smiled apologetically.

"What's this, Neji-sama was almost defeated by a tree? I thought you were supposed to train on logs because they _didn't_ fight back." Neji turned to see Kiba with a wide smile on his face. Akamaru barked.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, dog-breath." Neji replied sharply. Kiba did.

"Hey now, that's not fair. Neji could have destroyed that tree in one hit if he had wanted too." Tenten said.

Neji looked at her. "I can't tell if you're on my side or not."

"Tenten-chan! I brought some food for you too!" Naruto's voice drifted over from the kitchen. "Woah! This looks tasty, can I eat it?"

"No, you can't!" Tenten shouted as she ran back to the kitchen. Naruto was soon appeared back out in the living room, looking very harassed. "Chouji, get in here!" Tenten yelled. Truth be told, Tenten barely knew her way around a kitchen. She could make a cup of instant ramen as well as anyone, but anything more than microwavable dinners was beyond her. She knew that cooking was something that most women did, but it held no interest for her. Plus, it was her little way of fighting the system. Chouji, on the other hand, had actually been _trained_ to cook. It was a skill all Akimichi were taught by their parents. Granted, Chouji would just as soon eat food as cook it, but with Tenten constantly checking to make sure that he wasn't, the meal was coming along nicely. Hinata had brought various pies, as well as some cookies shaped like Naruto's head. Kiba had brought an actual turkey. Shino was supposed to bring some potatoes, but he hadn't arrived yet. Lee had brought, much to everyone's disapproval, curry. Neji had insisted on bringing brussel sprouts. Ino and Sakura had provided various types of fruit. The cookies Shikamaru and Chouji had brought her almost gone by now, luckily Hinata had gone overboard with hers. She wasn't expecting Sasuke to bring anything, considering that he didn't think he was coming. And Naruto, being Naruto, had brought thirty packs of instant ramen. Tenten herself had wormed her way out of having to bring any food, much to her relief.

Shino arrived soon though, and presented Tenten with potatoes. She thanked him, but once he had left the kitchen, she double-checked that there were no bugs on them anywhere.

Out in the living room, Naruto was in the middle of exaggerating a story of one of his missions when Hinata finally woke up.

"What… where am I?" she asked.

Neji came up and answered her, with Naruto looking anxious behind him. "You're at Sakura's house. We're having a Christmas party."

"You fainted from your fever, but don't worry, I carried you here!" Naruto added. "Are you feeling better now?"

Hinata's face turned very red again, and she said quietly, "Y-yes, Naruto-kun."

Neji was slowly backing away, a slight smirk on his face. Naruto still looked worried. "Are you sure? You're turning red again. If you faint, you might miss the party."

Hinata looked up suddenly. _He's worried about me?_ The realization was sweet, but caused her to turn even redder. She absolutely refused to faint, though. Naruto-kun wanted her here. "I… I'll be fine, N-Naruto-kun. I'll just r-rest a while." She tried her best to smile pleasantly. Naruto seemed convinced. "Alright, Hinata-chan." He smiled and then headed towards Kiba and Shino.

"Hey, Naruto, any idea when Sakura and Ino are getting back? It's kind of hard to have a party without the host."

"How should I know? Let's play a game or something while we wait." Naruto said.

"Hey, that's a good idea! Naruto, leave the room for a second. I'll call you back when we're ready." Kiba said, a big grin slapped onto his face.

"Um, ok." Naruto walked into the kitchen to see Chouji eating the last of the cookies he had brought.

"Chouji, no! I told you, you can't eat those. Aw, it's to late now. Just don't eat anything else." Tenten scolded him. Chouji smiled sheepishly. "Naruto, if you're looking for food, you'd better turn around right now."

"I have to wait in here, Tenten. It's a game."

"Oh. What game is it?"

Naruto shrugged. "I don't know. I just have to wait here. Maybe Kiba will… Those cookies look like my face!" Naruto pointed at a very large plate of cookies, all of which were shaped like his head, complete with squinty eyes, smile, whisker-like birthmarks, spiky hair, and Konoha forehead protector.

"Oh yeah, those. Hinata brought them. And a good thing too, because otherwise we wouldn't have any cookies at all!" she yelled the last part at Chouji.

"This isn't the first time Hinata's made food look like my face. Man, does she enjoy eating my head or something? She seems too nice for that." Naruto said, looking just like one of the cookies, except with a small frown instead of a smile.

Tenten grinned. "Your right, she does seem too nice. Maybe there's another reason she does it."

"Yeah, but I can't think of anything."

Before Tenten could reply, Kiba's voice was heard from the living room. "Okay Naruto, you can come in now!"

Naruto hurried back into the room, and then stopped suddenly. There were six Kibas in the room. One was putting the tree up; it's top scraping on the ceiling. Another was lying on a couch with his eyes closed. Two more were leaning against the wall, one by the front door, another closer to the window. The fifth Kiba was standing in the middle of the room, grinning widely at Naruto. The sixth was sitting by the door to the kitchen scratching his ear with his foot.

"Ok Naruto, here's the game. You have to figure out which one of us is the real Kiba." The Kiba in the middle of the room said.

"You can talk to us, ask us questions, but you can't touch us at all." The Kiba by the window said, without even looking at Naruto."

"Go for it!" the first Kiba said, having finished with tree."

Naruto looked around at them all. Everyone looked just like Kiba, except for the one that was obviously Akamaru. Slowly, he worked things out in his mind. _The Kiba on the couch is probably Hinata, she said she needed to rest. The one by the tree is definitely Fuzzy-brows. Akamaru is scratching himself. That leaves Shino, Neji, and the real Kiba. The two resting against the walls are probably Shino and Neji. So that means the middle one is Kiba!_ Naruto stuck his hand out at the Kiba in the middle of the room.

"You're definitely the real Kiba!" Naruto shouted. One by one, the other Kibas around the room cancelled their henges. Hinata on the couch, Lee at the tree, Neji by the door, Akamaru near the kitchen and Shino… in the middle.

"Ah! Shino! What?" Kiba came away from the window, grinning like a madman. "You totally thought Shino was me. Ha! You fell for it."

Naruto's mouth was hanging open. "Shino! You should be an actor. You seemed just like Kiba!"

"Acting does mot interest me, thank you. I'd sooner be a ninja." Shino replied.

"Acting is a good skill for shinobi to have though, Shino-kun." Hinata said.

"Okay, now, since Naruto picked Shino, it's Shino's turn to leave the room." Kiba said. Shino obliged silently.

"Who should we turn into?" Naruto asked, excited to be on the other side of the game.

"I suggest Neji!" Kiba said.

Neji took a step forward. "Seeing as Kiba has selected me to choose who we will be henging next, I pick Hinata-sama."

"Neji-nii-san!" Hinata whirled around.

"Ooooh, that was sneaky, Neji." Naruto said, shaking his head, but taking on the form of Hinata. Lee followed suit. "Sorry Hinata, but you've been chosen." Kiba shrugged as he did the same.

Neji also took the form of his younger cousin. "You can come back now, Shino-kun." he said, with Hinata's voice.

Shino entered the room and stared at each of them in turn. He walked over to Neji and asked him a question none of the others could hear. Neji whispered back an answer. Shino did the same with Kiba and Hinata, and then it was Naruto's turn.

"Hinata, what color is Naruto's hair?" Shino asked him. Naruto thought that was a strange question to ask. He almost glanced up, but remembered not to. There would only be raven colored hair anyway. "Yellow." He answered.

Shino then moved on to Lee, then faced them all. "You are Hinata." He said, pointing at Hinata. The others unhenged. "How did you know that?" Naruto asked.

"It was quite simple, really." Shino stated. "I asked each one of you to tell me what color Naruto's hair was. Neji, Kiba, and Lee all said blond. Naruto said yellow. Hinata said gold." Hinata was turning bright red, but Kiba was laughing. "You said your hair is yellow? That's just too funny."

"There's nothing funny about it! It is yellow!" Naruto yelled at them.

Neji was even smiling. "Now that you mention it, his hair could be golden. It sort of glows with this radiance. Or maybe that's just because it's _really_ yellow." Kiba laughed even harder at that. Shino didn't, but that didn't mean he hadn't found it funny. Naruto got mad and demanded Kiba leave the room next, thinking to get some revenge.

However, Kiba said it was Hinata's turn. She managed to pick out Lee, who managed to pick out Kiba, who easily picked out Naruto. Naruto was going to go into the kitchen again, and maybe steal a cookie if Tenten wasn't paying much attention, when there was a knock at the door. Lee answered it.

"Sasuke-kun, you decided to come after all! I'm so glad." Lee said happily.

Sasuke glared at him murderously. "I'm not here voluntarily." He said, walking in. It was then that they all saw a shadow attached to his feet. Shikamaru came in after, on the other end of the shadow.

"God, you're troublesome." He said to Sasuke, before turning to Naruto. "I thought that you had the biggest mouth in Konoha, but this guy complained all the way here. I would have preferred listening to Sakura and Ino yelling at each other, at least that can be entertaining from time to time."

"Hey, where are they anyways?" Kiba asked.

"I don't know. They got into an argument and fell behind." Shikamaru shrugged.

Naruto was looking at Sasuke slyly and giggling. Sasuke noticed.

"What are you laughing at, dobe?" he asked, annoyed.

"Are you planning to leave?"

"Yeah, as soon as Shikamaru's jutsu wears off."

"Don't you know what will happen if you do that?"

"What do you mean?"

"If you try to get away again, Ino's going to put her mind into you." Naruto said, cheerfully.

Sasuke's eyes widened. "You're shitting me."

Naruto shook his head. "Do you think she won't do it?"

Sasuke's eye twitched, but the rest of him was still. "There's no way I'm going to let her into my head."

Kiba grabbed Sasuke from behind, draping an arm over his shoulder. "Then you'll be staying! That's good; otherwise we'd have an awkward time with the secret Santa."

"I don't have a present to give." Sasuke said, matter-of-factly.

"Well, I'm sure you have _something_ that Sakura wants." Sasuke might have paled, if he wasn't so pale to begin with.

"I… Aw, shit. Sakura?"

"You betcha. She's the only name that didn't get picked, and you were the only person who didn't pick a name."

Sasuke sighed as Shikamaru walked away, convinced that his captive wouldn't try to escape again. Instead of leaping out the window, he wandered over to the kitchen and stuck his head in.

"Hey, here come the girls!" Naruto shouted, pointing out the door, which Shikamaru hadn't bothered closing.

"Naruto! What are you doing standing there with my door open like that! You're letting all the cold in!" Sakura's voice came from outside.

"Shikamaru left it open! I'm just waiting for you!" Naruto yelled back.

"They bicker like a married couple." Neji said, shaking his head.

"M-married couple?" Hinata asked quietly, shaking slightly.

Kiba placed his arm around her shoulder, comforting her. "Don't put much stock in that, Hinata. Naruto bickers with everyone. 'Cept you." He smiled at her.

_He's right,_ Hinata thought, _Naruto-kun and I never bicker, or fight, or argue. Although, maybe that's only because I barely ever talk to him._ Hinata came out of her thoughts to see Naruto staring right at her. "Uwah!" she yelled, taking a step back. She tripped over her feet and landed on the couch. Behind Naruto, Sakura and Ino were already inside, and this time the door was closed.

"Oh, that's okay Hinata. You don't have too. I was just hoping to find someone besides Chouji, cause we always draw. No one else wants to either." Naruto looked disappointed, and Hinata, for some reason, felt guilty.

"N-no, it's okay, N-Naruto-kun. I don't m-mind." Hinata said, having not the slightest idea what it was she was agreeing to. It didn't matter though, when she saw the grin that split across his face. Whatever she had just agreed to was worth it.

"Alright! It'll be fun, Hinata, I promise!" I promise. Hinata had heard Naruto say those words before, but this was the first time he had directed them to her alone. Hinata nodded, red spreading from her cheeks to cover her whole face. Naruto noticed this.

"And it'll help that fever too!" he said, feeling clever. For a while the two of them stood there in awkward silence, and even Kiba didn't say anything.

Hinata started speaking in a quiet voice. "N-Naruto-kun, I-"

"Well, Shikamaru wants to play shogi with me, so I'd better go." Naruto said, having clearly not heard her. He wandered off without waiting for a reply, leaving Hinata staring after him. Kiba shook her slightly and asked her if she was okay.

"Yes, Kiba-kun. I'm fine." Hinata replied, dazed.

"Oh yeah? If you're so fine, then what did you just agree to do with Naruto?" Kiba shot back.

"I, um, I'm not sure." Hinata pushed her index fingers together.

"Hah! I knew it. Well, I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise for you." Kiba said, with a big grin on his face.

"Kiba-kun!" Hinata shouted after him, but he was already talking with Ino and Lee about something.

"So when you really think about it, there really are far more kinds of taijutsu in the village then ninjutsu and genjutsu put together." Lee was telling them.

"Well really there are only five kinds of genjutsu. You can categorize them based by which sense they use to capture you. But if you consider every ninjutsu to be its own type, then really there are far more of them." Ino replied.

"But you don't. There are only the five elements, and all ninjutsu fall into one of those five categories." Kiba said.

"Exactly. And almost every clan in the village has its own style of taijutsu, modified to compliment the other techniques of the clan, the Hyuuga's Gentle Fist technique being the most obvious example." Lee added, nodding.

"But you can compare taijutsu according to its target. Yours, Lee, is meant to do external damage. Break bones and that sort of stuff. Most taijutsu is like that. But some, such as the Gentle Fist, are intended for internal damage, like the tenketsu and internal organs. Following that line of thought, there are just two types of taijutsu." Ino countered. "Right, Shikamaru?"

"But then you would have to categorize ninjutsu by it's target, which is way to troublesome to bother with." Shikamaru replied without looking up, then moved a shogi piece.

"You think everything is troublesome!" Ino yelled at him.

"That's 'cause it is." Shikamaru said, lazily.

Ino raised her fist. "Why you… why you!"

"Shhhhh!" Naruto said as he looked at the board in concentration.

Chouji came out of the kitchen just then to announce that the food was ready. "We've got everything a good Christmas meal needs! And ramen too!" Naruto cheered loudly and gave Hinata a knowing wink, which left her stunned and confused. Everyone else was talking with animation as they all made their way to the two smaller tables pushed together to seat the twelve of them. Tenten grabbed Chouji and Naruto before they could sit down, though.

"Oh no you don't. You two are helping me bring out the food. And if you argue about it, I'll dump the ramen down the toilet." She said, before either Chouji or Naruto could so much as open their mouths. Once they had set the table, Naruto demanded that, as payment for helping with setting the table, he pick where everyone was to sit. Everyone was hungry, and they agreed in order to eat all the sooner. He organized it with Sasuke sitting between Sakura and Ino, and himself beside Hinata on the other side of the table in front of the ramen. But after that he lost interest, so everyone just picked chairs and sat themselves.

While Sasuke was cursing Naruto with every bone in his body, Sakura and Ino were each offering to dish him up various foods. Hinata, on the other hand, was amazed at her luck. Naruto actually wanted her to sit beside him!

As they took their seats, Naruto turned to her, with a very serious look on his face, and said, "Alright, just keep eating until you're full. The person who eats the most wins."

Hinata looked at him, trying to figure out what he meant.

"Hinata?"

"Y-yes, Naruto-kun?"

"You remember the ramen eating contest I challenged you to?"

Ramen. Eating. Contest. So that was it. Finally everything made sense. The conversation, the wink, and why he wanted her to sit next to him. The only drawback was that one bowl of ramen would probably fill Hinata up.

At the other end of the table, Kiba was trying to get Neji and Shino to have a staring contest.

"C'mon, it'll be the most ultimate match ever! People will talk about it for years to come. You'll be legends!"

"You say all that, but… It only convinces me that I should definitely not do it." Neji replied. "Besides, Shino has sunglasses. How would we know if he'd blinked?"

Kiba looked to Shino, then back to Neji. "What are you talking about? You can tell when he blinks."

Neji scowled. "No you can't."

"Of course you can, watch this." Kiba turned to Shino. "Go ahead, blink. …There! Didn't you see?"

"Don't be an idiot. Nothing changed. You didn't see him blink." Neji was beginning to suspect Kiba was just trying to annoy him.

"Come on, you can't expect me to believe that you actually didn't see him blink!"

"Of course I didn't see him blink!" Neji hissed.

"Excuse me for a moment, please." Shino said as he stood up and left the two to their argument. They sat there for a moment, before they both burst out talking at the same time.

"Are you blind? I though you Hyuuga's could see everything!"

"You're being so stupid even your own teammate is abandoning you."

"Hey guys," Lee said, pushing Kiba out of his chair in his rush, "Hinata's eating as much as Naruto. She's on her fifth bowl of ramen!" After a split second of silence, Kiba, Neji, TenTen and Ino ran to the other end of the table, with Lee right behind. Chouji and Sakura were already standing behind Hinata, cheering her on, while Shikamaru watched with a faint smile of amusement on his face. Sasuke was standing behind Hinata too, Sakura had a death grip on his arm, but he was staying silent. Both Naruto and Hinata had four empty bowls beside their places.

"C'mon Hinata, you can do it!" Ino yelled at her.

"I've never seen her eat nearly this much." Neji said to Kiba.

"She's just never had the right motivation before." Kiba said, winking. Neji had nothing to say to that.

Naruto finished his bowl and quickly grabbed another one, filling it with ramen. After a few moments Hinata followed suit.

"Go Hinata! You can win this!" Tenten said.

"How come everyone's cheering for Hinata?" Naruto complained. "Come on, Sakura! Cheer for me!" A baked potato to the face quickly silenced him.

"Why would I choose you over Hinata, idiot? No one would make that mistake."

"How about you Chouji, please cheer for me?" Naruto asked hopefully.

Chouji looked from Hinata to Naruto, then shook his head. "Sorry, Naruto, but I can't cheer against someone that cute. You're on your own for this one."

Shikamaru was grinning slightly. "You brought this down on yourself, Naruto. You're the one who asked her." Even Sasuke was having trouble hiding his smirk.

"Gah! Hinata, way to be cute!" Naruto yelled, completely ignorant of the reaction she must have when he said those words. Hinata froze in place and turned a shade of red which would put any flower to shame. Although she didn't utter a word, her lips slowly mouthed the word 'cute' a few times over. Naruto was too busy eating to notice this sudden change in his opponent, but everyone else did.

"Ack, Hinata, snap out of it!"

"Get a hold of yourself, girl!"

"You can't lose now! Argh!"

"I… I think th-that I'm full." Hinata said slowly. "You win, N-Naruto-kun. E-Excuse me from the t-table, please."

"She says that," Kiba told Sakura and Sasuke with a stupid grin slapped onto his face, "but then why's she acting like a winner?"

"Haha! Did you see that? Hinata only ate six bowels of ramen! It must be because she's so small." Naruto said he came up to the trio. Sakura smacked him upside the head.

"I'm amazed she ate that much, you buffoon." She yelled at him. "But if you're going to be a sore winner, than you're in for a real pounding."

Naruto backed off a bit. "Don't worry, Sakura-chan. Iruka-sensei prepared me for this day!"

Sakura blinked. "He prepared you for the day you would face Hinata in an eating contest?" Kiba snorted.

"No no," Naruto said, shaking his head. "He taught me to be a gentleman!" He looked very proud of this concept. Everyone seemed rather shocked. After a few seconds, Kiba started laughing.

"It's not funny, Kiba! Shut up!" Naruto yelled, pointing at him. Before Kiba could make a response though, Sasuke shoved him to the side.

"Okay, Naruto. Let's see you prove that you can be a gentleman." There was something of a gleam in his eye.

"Sasuke-kun…" Sakura sighed out of admiration.

Naruto wasn't so enthralled. "Fine! Just watch me! You've just got to wait until the presents."

"Speaking of which, get your butts over here!" Tenten called. Naruto, Sasuke, Kiba, and Sakura turned to see everyone else in a circle, with enough room left for four. "The last one to sit down has to start!" she added, for good measure.

In the time it took Sakura to blink, the three boys were already sitting down in the circle. _Why those little…!_ Taking a slow breathe to calm herself and not beat Naruto to a pulp using Kiba as the weapon, Sakura went to the tree Lee had brought and grabbed a flat package covered in pink paper.

"Here Lee-san. I got you for my person. Merry Christmas." Sakura said, handing him the gift.

Lee bowed as he accepted it. "Thank you very much Sakura-chan." Opening it he discovered a green T-shirt with the word 'Youth' spelled out across the back and the Konoha leaf on the front.

"This is great, Sakura-chan! I'll put it on right away!" Lee was very excited about his new shirt and quickly took the old one off, at which point everyone looked away. "It fits perfectly! Thank you so much Sakura-san!" Lee was beaming. Sakura smiled and nodded, then took her place in the circle.

Lee went over to the tree. "Besides the tree," he announced to the company, "I also had to get a gift for Shikamaru-san. I know that Shikamaru-san likes strategy games, but Asuma-sensei said that he already had those, and that I would probably be better off coming up with something on my own. So I did! Merry Christmas Shikamaru-san!" Lee gave Shikamaru a package which must have been heavy, judging from how Shikamaru handled it.

"Thanks, Lee." Shikamaru said, opening the box. Pushing aside some wrapping paper, he pulled out a set of leg weights. For a moment he stared at them, the expression on his face unreadable. Lee didn't seem to notice anything wrong. "Now you and I can train together!" he said, thrusting out his thumb and smiling wide.

To everyone's surprise, Shikamaru returned the thumbs up, albeit without a smile. "Thanks again, Lee. I'll do my best."

"Has he snapped?" Ino whispered to Chouji.

"Of course not. He'll worm his way out of it later, but for right now, it'd be too troublesome." Chouji responded.

Shikamaru stood up, but didn't go over to the tree. "The name I pulled was Shino's. I got Temari to pick this up for me, and I got just a few days ago when she last visited." He pulled a small book out from inside his chuunin vest. "Merry Christmas, buddy."

Kiba was sitting next to Shino. "What is that? A book on desert bugs?"

Shino looked over the book's front and back covers. "This will prove an interesting read. Thank you, Shikamaru."

"I see you went to all the trouble of wrapping it." Neji said snidely. Shikamaru shrugged.

Shino tucked the book away in his coat and walked over to the tree. He picked up a large box and walked back into the circle, stopping in front of Naruto. "Merry Christmas, Naruto."

Naruto stood and received the box awkwardly. "Thanks, Shino." Sitting back down, Naruto opened the box and gasped. He pulled out a Hokage hat. Or, at least, that was what it looked like. Upon taking a closer look, the coloring was actually orange, and instead of a fire symbol at the front there was a picture of a bowl of ramen.

"Shino, this is totally cool! Thanks a lot! This thing rocks!" Naruto sat down happily and stuck the hat on his head. He might have just become the actual Hokage, and he couldn't have looked much happier.

"Shino, where did you find something like that?" Sakura asked him, looking with amazement at Naruto.

"I made it myself." Shino responded.

"You… wow. That's pretty impressive, Shino." Sakura said.

"Yeah, it is." Ino added.

Kiba elbowed Shino in the side. "Girls love a man who can sew, hey? I bet you Sasuke can't sew."

"No way! Sasuke could totally sew anything better than Shino could!" Sakura yelled.

"Please don't defend me." Sasuke said, looking a little unnerved.

"And just to prove it, he challenges you to a sewing match!" Ino yelled.

Shino turned his head and looked directly at Sasuke, who couldn't help but feel uncomfortable under the Aburame's gaze, but returned it nonetheless.

"That will not be necessary." Shino said in such a way that neither Sakura nor Ino could seem to find a reason to dispute him. Sasuke made a mental note to thank Shino later and hit Kiba.

"_Anyways_," Naruto said, trying to get the attention back to him, "I'm going to give out my present now. As well as prove a point." He turned towards Sakura and Sasuke with his eyebrows raised so far up, they were lost in his hair. There was no mistaking the people to whom he was proving his point. He walked over to the tree, picked up a box wrapped in orange paper, and walked into the middle of the circle.

"Ahem," he cleared his throat, "The name I pulled was none other than our very own…" He left a pause for over-dramatic effect "Hinata-chan!"

A small "Eeeep!" came from the girl, who was again turning red.

"This isn't only you're Christmas present. It's also a consolidation prize for the ramen eating contest. It'll also help keep you warm when you go outside, and you won't get fevers as often." Naruto added, when he finally noticed that Hinata was turning red.

"I didn't even know he knew what consolidation meant." Shikamaru whispered to Neji, while Naruto gave the orange clad box to the Hyuuga heiress. She opened it and pulled out a coat. A coat that looked exactly like Naruto's, except than instead of orange, it was the same beige color of her usual jacket. "Now you and me will look the same. We'll be like a pair!" For a whole minute everything was still and silent.

Naruto started to panic. "Er… Don't you… Is it a bad present Hinata-chan? If it is I can get you a better one. I'm really sorry, I'm not really good at this sort of thing and-"

"Naruto!" Tenten yelled at him. "Calm down. It's a good present."

"But Hinata doesn't think so!"

"It's not what you think, Naruto!" Sakura said, frustrated at her teammates ineptness.

"Yeah, don't over-react." Kiba said

"I'm sure Hinata loves it." Tenten finished.

"Look at her, she's on the verge of tears! I'm sooo sorry Hinata! Please let me make it up to you!" Naruto was on his knees now. Tenten wanted to say something, but Naruto was right. Hinata _did_ look like she was on the verge of tears. Of course, Tenten knew that it wasn't because she hated the present, it was quite the opposite. But only Hinata herself could convince him of that. Luckily, Hinata finally spoke up.

"Naruto-kun!" she yelled, ending the commotion. Naruto looked up to her from his kneeling position on the ground.

"N-Naruto-kun. I… I think th-this present is j-just perfect. Th-thank you, Naruto-kun."

"Are you sure Hinata? I don't want to leave you with something you don't even like. I can get you something better, I promise!"

Hinata shook her head. "N-No, Naruto-kun. I... I love it."

Naruto looked at her. "You… do?"

Hinata nodded her head furiously. She seemed to have used up her daily quota of words she could use in front of Naruto. He, however, seemed to be satisfied. Wiping his brow as he stood up, he said, "I'm really glad Hinata. When we go on missions together you can wear it, and we'll look the same." He already seemed to be his old smiling self.

"But why wait until then?" Kiba said suddenly. "Naruto, why don't you guys hang out in Konoha?" There was a mischievous grin on his face, but he managed to hide it from Naruto.

"But all I do in Konoha is train and eat ramen." Naruto said, as if no one would want to do either of those things with _him_.

"Ergo…" Shikamaru looked at Naruto expectantly. Naruto looked back with a blank expression on his face.

"Air-go? What kind of word is that? What is it supposed to mean?"

"He means that you should do one of those things with Hinata." Kiba said, while the girl in question was trying to look very small and unnoticeable.

Naruto's face suddenly lightened up. "Hinata!" He said cheerily, as he turned to face her. "Do you want to train with me?"

"Idiot!" Ino yelled, as she hit him over the head with her fist.

"You wouldn't be able to keep up with her anyways." Sasuke smirked.

"_Actually_," Kiba said before things got out of control, "It would probably be better to go with the later one."

"You mean ramen?" Naruto asked.

"Yep!" Kiba responded.

"But… but Hinata can only eat like six bowls."

"Not for an eating contest, idiot!" Sakura yelled at him.

"For the company." Shino added.

Naruto slowly turned around to Hinata. "Hinata," he said, as if she hadn't just heard everything people had been yelling at him, "would you like to go get ramen with me sometime? It doesn't have to be another eating contest. Although, if you want to, I won't mind at all if-Ow!"

"NO eating contests." Sakura stated firmly.

"Okay, okay. Hey Kiba, you can come too if-Ow!"

"NO inviting other people. Just sit down before I break your legs and you can't get back up."

Naruto meekly walked back to sit beside Sasuke, who raised an eyebrow and asked, "That was you being a gentleman?"

"Pshh! Like you could do better."

"Alright! It's Hinata's turn now, so let's let her go." Sakura said, before sitting down.

Hinata stood up slowly. "Thank…" She took a deep breath. "Thank you, Sakura-chan. My gift is for Neji-nii-san." She pulled a small box out from under the tree. "Merry Christmas, Nii-san."

"Thank you, Hinata-sama." Neji said, taking the box and opening it. He pulled out a dark navy beret. Noticing that everyone was watching, he quickly put it on, blushing ever so slightly. Hinata stood over him and adjusted it a little, then smiled. "There. You look really cute, Nii-san."

"Ah, Thanks, Hinata-sama." Neji stood up, wearing the beret, and walked over to the Christmas tree and grabbed a strangely wrapped present.

"Well, I got Kiba's name, but I wasn't really sure what to get you, so I ended up with this." He deftly tossed Kiba the package.

"I guess it isn't exactly fragile, then." Kiba said as he unwrapped it. For a moment he started at the object resting in the wrappings, then he laughed.

"What is it? What is it?" Naruto wanted to know.

Kiba held up a pack of dog treats for everyone to see.

"Well, I'm glad he didn't get _my_ name, that's for sure." Ino told Chouji.

"Haha! If I had gotten Kiba's name, I would have given him the same thing!" Naruto shouted.

"I can't believe you actually got him that!" Tenten scolded Neji.

"C'mon, he likes it." Neji said in his defense, glad that Tenten didn't hit people like Sakura and Ino.

"And he got my favorite kind, too!" Kiba said, waving the pack around enthusiastically. Akamaru noticed, though, and ran and snatched the treats right out of his owners hand.

"Hey!" Kiba laughed, "Give those back." Instead, Akamaru tore the top off and began eating them. "Fine, just don't eat to many or you'll have a stomach ache." Kiba said, leaving his dog to its own devices.

"Well then, I guess the show must go on. I didn't bother wrapping my present, cause it's pretty small. But we all know that good things come in small packages. So, Merry Christmas Ino." Kiba handed her a small envelope. Ino opened it, blurted a quick, "Thanks Kiba."

"What is it?" Chouji asked her.

"It's a spa day!" Ino exclaimed happily.

Sakura and Tenten exchanged knowing glances. Chouji wasn't quite as learned. "A day at the spa? Is that good?" he asked.

"Of course it is. They'll beautify me! I'll be so radiant that even Sasuke-kun won't be able to resist my charms."

"They couldn't make you look good if they had a year, let alone a day." Sakura said matter-of-factly. Ino waved the paper in her direction.

"You're just jealous!" Ino said, sticking out her tongue.

"Now, now, girls. There's plenty of Sasuke to go around." Kiba said.

"No there isn't!" Sasuke, Ino, and Sakura all shouted at once.

Shikamaru sighed. "Can we please get on with this?" Ino glared at Sakura, but slowly walked over to the tree and picked out a box.

"Merry Christmas, Chouji." Chouji unwrapped the present, then held up a box of chocolate with the look of someone who had just won some great battle.

"Thanks, Ino!" He said merrily. He opened it and popped a chocolate into his mouth, then walked over to the tree and picked up a identical box. Ino pointed at it in shock.

"You got yourself a present!?" she demanded. "And it's the same thing I got you!"

"No," Chouji replied, "This is my gift for Tenten. Merry Christmas, Tenten." He said, turning to her and handing her the box. Tenten laughed. "Thanks Chouji. I'll enjoy these. They look delicious."

"They are." Chouji smiled, then sat back down beside Ino.

Tenten stood up and grabbed the last object under the tree, which was wrapped in cloth. "My present is for Sasuke. Merry Christmas, buddy." She handed him the gift, which he took hesitantly. Opening it, Sasuke found a set of kunai inside.

"Oh. These are really nice. Uh, thanks Tenten." He held up one of the kunai, as if to show that he meant what he said.

"Alright!" Kiba exclaimed suddenly. "I've been waiting all evening for this! What's Sasuke going to give to Sakura?"

Everyone turned to look at Sasuke, who shifted uncomfortably. "I wasn't planning on coming, so I didn't actually bring a gift."

"Then I guess there's only one thing for it." Kiba said, looking very much like a mad scientist from a movie. "You'll have to… Kiss her!"

Sasuke paled. Sakura blushed. A vein appeared on Ino's forehead. "Are you serious?" they all asked him.

"That's the second time they've all spoken together." Shikamaru noted. "And yet they never all mean it the same way."

"That is _not_ happening. Period."

Naruto did a little jig and started chanting, "Sasuke's afraid of cooties! Sasuke's afraid of cooties!"

Sasuke glared at him. "That's not it dobe!"

"Then what _is_ it?" Kiba asked gleefully.

"I don't have time for stuff like this!" Sasuke complained.

"It'll take all of ten seconds, idiot." Shikamaru countered.

"Do it for the glory of youth!" Lee shouted.

"No." Sasuke replied.

"Is that a blush spreading across your cheeks, Sasuke?" Neji asked, sounding completely sincere.

"No it's not! Get off it guys! I don't even want to be here! I don't want to take part in your stupid secret Santa, and I do not want to kiss Sakura!"

There was silence for a moment, with everyone watching Sasuke.

Sakura spoke up. "Really, Sasuke-kun?"

"Really," Sasuke said turning to face her, "So get over it and find some other guy to drool over! I'm sick and tired of-huh?"

Kiba shoved Sasuke towards Sakura, who caught him in her arms and kissed him right on the lips. Everyone's eyes were bulging except for Sakura, who had closed hers. Time seemed to drag incredibly slowly, yet everyone felt sure that Shikamaru's estimate of ten seconds had been passed easily. Finally, Sakura let Sasuke go. He gasped for air, and everyone else collectively let out their breath. Naruto and Kiba started laughing so hard that they couldn't stay standing. Ino was furiously yelling at Sakura, who seemed in a daze. Shikamaru was shaking his head. Chouji was grinning like an idiot. Even Neji was having trouble suppressing a smile. Finally Sasuke stood up.

"I hate you all." He said before walking out of the room. After a few moments, they heard a door open and slam close.

"He says that," Naruto said, looking all the fox, "But I think he liked it."

"Are you kidding? He loved it. I give him a week tops until he comes back for more." Kiba replied.

"I'll take that bet, actually." Neji said.

"No you won't!" Tenten said. "None of you are going to make bets on this. None of you." The last three words were emphasized.

"Alright, alright. Calm down. We were just joking." Kiba said, looking harassed.

"Good. Now, what's next Sakura?" Tenten asked. Sakura, however, hadn't moved. She was still gazing blankly at the wall. Arms hanging limply at her sides, there was a faint smile traced along her lips.

"Sakura?" Tenten repeated.

"I don't think she can hear you. She's all wrapped up in a dream." Neji said.

"Well that's no good. What do we do now?" Kiba asked.

"We could call it a night and go home." Shikamaru suggested, stifling a yawn.

"No way! I'm just getting going!" Naruto shouted.

"Yes! The glories of youth must not be limited by curfews or bed times!" Lee added.

"Well then what do you suggest?" Ino asked.

"We could eat." Chouji said. "We could all go out and get ramen."

"I think _not_." Tenten replied. "It would probably be best if we did all go home. I'm sure we'll see each other soon, so we can party again another time."

"Yeah, that sounds like a plan. Just let me drag Sakura's fat butt up to her room." Ino said, grabbing Sakura around the middle and pulling her out of the room.

"Shino! You've got to come with me!" Kiba said, draping an arm around his friend.

"And why would that be?" Shino asked.

"You'll see when we get there, c'mon. We'll see you later everybody." Kiba said cheerfully, putting on his shoes and urging Shino to do the same. "Shikamaru, Chouji, you should come too."

Naruto pulled Lee to his feet. "Hey, what about us?" he demanded, not wanting to be left out.

Kiba shrugged. "Sure, you guys can come too. I don't know if you'll find it nearly as interesting, though."

"Actually," Neji said suddenly, "I need Naruto. You guys will have to go without him."

Kiba shrugged again. "Sure thing. Let's go boys." Kiba dragged Shino out the door and the rest followed.

"Why do you need me? I wanted to go see what they were all going to see." Naruto pouted.

"I know, I know, but I have a favor to ask of you." Neji responded coolly.

"What's that?" Naruto's interest was suddenly piqued.

"I promised Tenten that I would help clean up here a bit before we head out, but I don't want to keep Hinata-sama waiting. Could you walk her home for me? Who knows what's waiting in the dark out there."

"Neji-nii-san!" Hinata yelled, before holding a hand up to her mouth. She was already turning pink.

Naruto, imagining great battles on the rooftops of Konoha which would lead to him becoming Hokage, agreed readily. "I can do that, no problem Neji!"

"I can't go with Naruto. If something… I just can't" Hinata whispered to Neji.

"Oh, cheer up. It some time to spend with Naruto. It's not like he's going to suddenly realize the implications of walking you home. He's way to think for that."

"But… But…" Hinata was struggling to think of a reason, any reason, to avoid this situation, but perhaps her subconscious was hiding them all from her, because although on one level, she was terrified of this, on another, deeper level she wanted nothing more than to spend time with Naruto.

"Come on Hinata!" Naruto called, already waiting at the open door. "Let's go!"

Hinata fumbled with her shoes, then put on her new Naruto-style coat. Naruto grinned wide and, grabbing her hand, pulled her out the door.

"I wonder how that will turn out?" Tenten asked, watching as Neji walked over to the door and closed it.

"I'm sure she'll be fine in the morning. Nothing worse that a fever."

"And some fond memories, I'll wager. Are you really going to help me like you said you would."

"Grabbing some dishes off the table, Neji smiled. "Of course. Why else would I have said that I would?"

"You're shameless."

Once all the dishes had been taken back to the kitchen, the two of the prepared to leave.

"Aren't you glad you came?" Tenten asked him.

"Oh yes. I haven't laughed this hard in a long time. Next time you throw a party, count me in." Neji replied.

"I'll hold you to that." Tenten laughed, poking him on the chest.

"HAAAAAAH! Mistletoe attack!"

A kunai suddenly imbedded itself in the ceiling above the couple, and hanging from the end of it was indeed some mistletoe. Ino jumped out of her hiding space.

"Oh yeah! You guys are so caught. Now you must kiss!" She made a mock evil laugh that came across as a little creepy. Tenten blushed, while Neji took the kunai down and inspected the hole in the ceiling.

"I'll bet you Sakura won't be pleased to find that in the morning. Neither will her parents." He said.

"Oh, they'll get over it. But now to the matter at hand. The kiss!" Ino bulged her eyes as if to get a better view.

Tenten looked at Neji and Neji looked back down at her. For a while, the two just stared at each other.

"Oh come _on_!" Ino yelled at them. "If you're staring at each other for that long you both obviously want to do it!"

Neji turned to scowl at her, but when he turned back, Tenten wasn't there anymore.

"I'm in a big hurry, so I'll see you to later!" She called to them, already starting to lose herself in the snow, which had begun falling sometime during the evening.

Neji looked after her as Ino walked up beside him. "You two are both so fearless in battle, but at the simplest things you both quake in your boots." She said.

"It was just a spur of the moment thing. We're just friends." Neji responded coolly.

"You see how long you can keep telling yourself that. At this rate even Naruto will realize it before you do. Merry Christmas." Ino said as she, too, walked out of the door and started home.

Neji locked the door and then shut it behind him. It would not do to leave the head of the house waiting. Hiashi would want to know why Neji hadn't been guarding the Hyuuga heir. Hiashi didn't really have anything against Naruto, well, any more than most people, but he _would_ want to know why Neji wasn't fulfilling his duty. Heading out across the snowy street, Neji smiled to himself. It had been a wonderful night.


End file.
